The next monthly breakfast program by the CFAES-based Environmental Professionals Network will have you “Digging in With Ohio’s Soil Experts”—including Rattan Lal, CFAES’ 2019 Japan Prize laureate and Glinka World Soil Prize recipient—on the hows and whys of having healthy soils. It’s set for Wednesday, Dec. 4, the day before World Soil Day. Unearth details and register to join us.
At Home
He gives (real) buckeyes to Buckeyes
Doug Malone, pictured above, is an Ohio State “Redcoat”—a part-time worker-ambassador at university athletic events—who gives gleaming, rich-brown, actual Ohio buckeye nuts to Ohio State football players right before home games. It’s a tradition he’s carrying on from his late father. The Ohio State News video above tells his story.
The Ohio buckeye, Aesculus glabra, is Ohio State’s symbol, Ohio’s state tree, and can be grown as part of a sustainable landscape. But it takes a couple of considerations about how you tend it and where you plant it—worth it if you’re a fan of native plants, the Buckeyes, or both. Read tips from CFAES experts on how to grow your own Ohio buckeye tree.
Thursday: Will farming changes be enough to meet Lake Erie’s phosphorus goal?
CFAES researchers will present “Evaluating Management Options to Reduce Lake Erie Algal Blooms With Models of the Maumee River Watershed” during a public press conference at 2 p.m. Thursday, Nov. 21, on Ohio State’s Columbus campus. The event, the researchers say, will answer the question, “If agricultural landowners were to adopt a combination of feasible best management practices, could we reduce phosphorus enough to meet the targets set by the United States and Canada?”
CFAES’ Dave Apsley enters ‘Forest of Honor’
The Ohio Department of Natural Resources (ODNR) Division of Forestry (DOF) recently honored Dave Apsley, natural resources specialist with CFAES’ OSU Extension outreach arm, for his outstanding contributions to forestry. In a “Forest of Honor” ceremony on Oct. 17 in Zaleski State Forest in southeast Ohio, trees were planted to recognize Apsley and two other honorees.
CFAES alum Alan Wentz receives Aldo Leopold wildlife award
W. Alan Wentz, PhD, who earned his bachelor’s degree in agricultural and biological conservation from Ohio State in 1969 and is a 1999 recipient of CFAES’ Distinguished Alumni Award, was recognized with the Aldo Leopold Memorial Award for distinguished service to wildlife conservation in Reno, Nevada, on Oct. 1 at the joint meeting of The Wildlife Society and American Fisheries Society.
How to eat well and under budget—and also why it matters
It’s surprisingly inexpensive to eat good, healthy foods—as little as $4.50 per person per day—according to the U.S. Department of Agriculture and a Nov. 1 CFAES “Chow Line” column.
Lake Erie’s algal bloom was twice as bad as last year’s
This summer’s harmful algal bloom in Lake Erie was twice as severe as last year’s—7.3 compared to 3.6, respectively, on a severity index of 1–10—and was slightly less than 2017’s, which was rated at 8. That’s according to the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration and a Nov. 4 story on cleveland.com. Chris Winslow, director of Ohio Sea Grant and Stone Laboratory, was quoted in the story.
In Mansfield, 5 short films about nature
The EcoLab at Ohio State’s Mansfield campus is hosting a Nature Film Night from 6:30–8:30 p.m. Wednesday, Nov. 20. The event will feature five short films and discussion. Nicole Jackson of CFAES’ School of Environment and Natural Resources will moderate the discussion. Admission is free and open to the public. Find details and check out the flyer.
Carbon farming ‘a bridge to the future’?
Bloomberg reports that “Al Gore Is Opening a New Front In the War on Climate Change”—farming practices that sequester carbon dioxide in the soil—and CFAES’ own world expert on the subject, Rattan Lal, visited the former vice president’s farm in Tennessee to look at, walk upon, and talk about the possibilities. Excellent story by Emily Chasan, Bloomberg’s sustainable finance editor.
Lal directs CFAES’ Carbon Management and Sequestration Center. Earlier this year he was awarded the Japan Prize.
Everyone hail to the pumpkin song
Who does research to support the farmers who grew the pumpkins you’re seeing tonight? CFAES’ South Centers, that’s who.
More than just a pretty face, pumpkins are worth more than $10 million a year to Ohio farmers, the U.S. Department of Agriculture says. (Photo: Getty Images.)